QUICK NEWS, 3-23: TIME TO STICK WITH NEW ENERGY; FUNDING COMMUNITY SUN; GEOTHERM HEATS OREGON TOWN; EPA TO STUDY GAS DRILLING

TIME TO STICK WITH NEW ENERGY
Don't back away from renewable energy commitment
Editorial, March 17, 2010 (Rochester Post-Bulletin)

"At the end of last year, 37 states had set some type of goal related to the percentage of energy they produce from renewable sources…All but five…[are] legally binding targets that power companies must meet, or face some type of penalty."

"…[Republican gubernatorial asperant] Rep. Marty Seifert…introduced a bill that would let Minnesota back away from its commitment of using 25 percent renewable energy by 2025. Seifert voted in favor of the energy standard in 2007, but he now says it should be replaced…Make no mistake: Minnesota has set the bar high. Only a few states are pursuing a 25 percent renewable goal…only Illinois and Oregon are trying to get it done by 2025…"

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"But there are many reasons we should stand by our commitments to renewable energy…Right now, renewable energy is more costly than electricity produced from coal or natural gas, so without a legal imperative, utility companies would have no incentive to invest in alternative energy infrastructure…With the standards in place…companies like Xcel Energy must act… For the average, 3.5 kilowatt system, Xcel will pay $7,875, about one-third of the total cost. The "Solar Rewards" program is expected to attract more than 1,300 participants in the next three years."

The best thing about Minnesota's RES is that it will prevent the state from squandering these wind assets. (click to enlarge)

"Then there's the matter of pollution…Energy produced on wind farms kept 62 million tons of carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere last year, the equivalent of taking 10 million cars off America's highways. Without renewable energy, our air would be even dirtier…Finally, there's the direct economic impact of renewable energy…[T]he hundreds of wind turbines that dot our landscape…represent jobs for manufacturers, installers and maintenance workers, as well as a direct revenue stream for the landowners who sign long-term leases…

"…[I]f Minnesota backs away from its commitment to renewable energy, all bets are off concerning future research and growth in the wind and solar industries. If "green energy" developers don't have a guaranteed market for their product, they'll go elsewhere…[W]e might face a future in which wind turbines wouldn't be worth maintaining…We're just three years along in a process [of developing a New Energy infrastructure] that was supposed to take 18 years to complete…It's far too early to be bailing out."


FUNDING COMMUNITY SUN
Bill would extend solar tax credits to solar farms
Samantha Abernethy, March 17, 2010 (AP via BusinessWeek)

"U.S. Sen. Mark Udall, D-Colo., …is introducing a bill in Congress to extend residential solar energy tax credits to community-based solar farm collectives.

"Current tax law allows homeowners to receive a 30 percent tax credit for installing solar panels on their property…[Udall’s] Solar Uniting Neighborhoods [SUN] Act -- would allow homeowners to receive tax credits for panels installed somewhere else. That would extend the credit to community-owned solar farms, where neighbors designate sunny, treeless areas for installation of community solar panels…"

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"Udall said this change would make the tax credit more accessible financially and logistically. The tax credit would run until 2016…"

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"The so-called SUN Act would be a logical amendment to the clean energy bill introduced in December by Sens. John Kerry, Lindsay Graham and Joe Lieberman, Udall said. The cost would be offset if the bill passes as part of a larger package.

"The Colorado-based Clean Energy Collective estimates a five-year cost of $117 million, but the Joint Committee on Taxation has not yet released an official estimate…Udall said this is one of a number of clean energy jobs initiatives he plans to roll out in the coming months."


GEOTHERM HEATS OREGON TOWN
Ore. Town Uses Geothermal Energy to Stay Warm; Ore. town is poster child for geothermal energy, toasty sidewalks during winter and all
Jeff Barnard, March 20, 2010 (AP via ABC News)

"A combination of hot rocks and water like those that created Yellowstone's geysers have been tapped by the city to keep the sidewalks [of Klamath Falls] toasty since the early 1990s. They also heat downtown buildings, kettles at a brewhouse, and greenhouses and keep the lights on at a college campus.

"Geothermal wells in this town of 20,000 mark one of the nation's most ambitious uses of a green energy resource with a tiny carbon footprint, and could serve as a model for a still-fledgling industry that is gaining steam with $338 million in stimulus funds and more than 100 projects nationwide…Geothermal energy is unknown in much of the country but accounts for 0.5 percent of the nation's energy production."

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"…[H]ot rock is closer to the surface here, and comes with the water needed to bring the energy to the surface…With more than 600 geothermal wells heating houses, schools and a hospital as well as turning the turbine on a small power plant, Klamath Falls shows what everyday life could be if stimulus grants and venture capitalists turn geothermal energy from a Western curiosity to a game-changing energy resource.

"Until now, geothermal energy has been limited by having to find the three essentials ingredients occurring together in one place naturally: hot rock relatively close to the surface, water, and cracks in the rock that serve as a reservoir…Those limitations go away if engineers can tame…Enhanced Geothermal Systems [EGS]…[which] could be producing 100 gigawatts of electricity — equivalent to 1,000 coal-fired or nuclear power plants — by 2050, and has the potential to generate a large fraction of the nation's energy needs for centuries to come…"

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"One form of EGS involves drilling thousands of feet down to reach hot rock, pumping water down to fracture the rock to create reservoirs, then sending down water that will come back up another well as hot water or steam that can spin a turbine to generate electricity…The system can be dropped in practically anywhere that hot rocks are close enough to the surface to make drilling economical…The major problem with EGS is the potential to create earthquakes…[Earthquakes have stopped EGS projects] and an international protocol has been developed for monitoring and mitigating earthquake problems…

"Federal funding for geothermal started during the 1970s Arab oil embargo…[T]he Obama administration revived support for geothermal energy…[I]t is funding 123 demonstration projects in 38 states with stimulus funds…The centerpiece is $25 million to AltaRock Energy, Inc., of Seattle and Sausalito, Calif., to demonstrate EGS can produce electricity economically and without producing earthquakes…People in Klamath Falls don't have to be convinced…"


EPA TO STUDY GAS DRILLING
EPA to scrutinize water risk from fracturing
Tom Fowler (w/Jennifer Dlouhy), March 18, 2010 (Houston Chronicle)

"The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency will do a detailed study of hydraulic fracturing, the technique used to extract natural gas from dense shale formations, to determine whether it poses risks to surface and ground water…EPA formally announced…it has $1.9 million set aside for the study this year with more funds possible next year…

"Hydraulic fracturing involves drilling into a formation and injecting water mixed with sand and chemicals under high pressure. The mixture cracks open the shale while the sand holds open the fractures, allowing the natural gas to flow more freely to the surface…The chemicals make up a small part of the overall mix — less than 0.5 percent by volume — but often include hazardous substances such as acids and compounds found in cleaners and antifreeze."

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"While fracturing has been used for decades, concerns about its environmental effects have risen in recent years as its use has spread to Eastern states…and to more populated areas in the West…In a number of communities from Pennsylvania to Colorado and Wyoming, some landowners near natural gas drilling operations say their drinking water has been contaminated by fracturing fluids or natural gas.

"Industry leaders insist no instances of ground water contamination have been linked conclusively to the fracturing process, and that the EPA study will reaffirm their belief…[because] gas formations are typically hundreds of feet below drinking water aquifers and that it's in the industry's best interest to be a good neighbor…"

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"Environmental groups also said they're glad to see the EPA moving forward…The EPA issued a report in 2004 saying fracturing isn't a threat to drinking water, but some…[say] that study was biased…A number of the water contamination claims around the country are linked to surface spills of fracturing fluids or possibly defective well construction that allowed natural gas or drilling fluids to leak into water supplies…

"Hydraulic fracturing is not subject to federal drinking water laws but is regulated by state laws. The disposal and storage of all water and fracturing fluids that come back out of a gas well — called produced water — is covered by federal law…The House Energy and Commerce Committee started its own investigation of hydraulic fracturing last month…[T]hat inquiry seems to have focused on the use of diesel in fracturing fluids…The EPA is still determining the scope of [its] study…"